The controversy which preceded the greatest Wembley encounter between Tottenham and Manchester City is a salutary reminder of how domestic football once meant everything to the owners of this nation’s great clubs.
When it was announced that the 1981 FA Cup final replay — the last time these sides met in a final — would be decided on penalties, managers Keith Burkinshaw and John Bond were incandescent, insisting that there must be a second replay if the second game was tied. Burkinshaw called FA secretary Ted Croker personally.
‘The most important game of the season could hang on one strike of the ball, one goalkeeping mistake or save,’ fumed Bond.